Image of the day-Jupiter

Posted on April 8, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman

This magical image of Jupiter evokes the air of mystery and secrecy surrounding the Jupiter Mission in Stanley Kubrick’s scifi classic, Space Odyssey 2001. Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is a swirling storm seen for over 300 years, since the beginning of telescopic observations. But in February 2006, it had been joined by Red Spot Jr – formed as smaller whitish oval-shaped storms merged and then developed the iconic reddish hue. About half the size of the original Red Spot, Red Spot Jr. is similar in diameter to planet Earth. Seen here below and left of the ancient storm system, it trails the Great Red Spot by about an hour as the planet rotates from left to right. While astronomers still don’t exactly understand why the Solar System’s ruling gas giant’s red spots are red, they do think the appearance of Red Spot Jr. provides evidence for climate change.

New thermal images from powerful ground-based telescopes show swirls of warmer air and cooler regions never seen before within the Great Red Spot, enabling scientists to make the first detailed interior weather map of the giant storm system.